What reportedly happened: The student pilot, who was on a solo flight, landed on a dry lakebed he had landed on the day before with his instructor. On the day of the accident, the student attempted to takeoff utilizing a soft field technique in a gusty crosswinds. He took off in a westerly direction with the wind from about 200° at 10 knots with gusts to 15 knots. The airplane lifted off and was in ground effect when a gust of wind pushed it to the right. The student pilot tried to abort the takeoff. The 172 touched down beyond the lake bed surface in a field of sparsely spaced small dirt mounds and bushes. The main landing gear was damaged when the plane hit a dirt berm. This caused the wings to hit the ground.

Probable cause: The pilot’s inadequate compensation for the gusty and crosswind condition, and his failure to maintain control of the airplane during takeoff.